Antifouling anchor



July 2, 1957 o, DQTY, JR 2,797,658

ANTIFOULING ANCHOR Filed Aug. 51, 1954 Y 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Oscar A. Dory,Jr

INVENTOR.

July 2, 1957 o. A. DOTY, JR 2,797,658

I ANTIFOULING ANCHOR Filed Aug. 51, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oscar/1. Dory,Jr

INVENTOR.

United States Patent ANTIFOULING ANCHOR Oscar A. Doty, In, Crowley, La.,assignor of one-fourth to Oscar A. Doty, Sr., Crowley, La.

Application August 31, 1954, Serial No. 453,218

2 Claims. (Cl. 114-208) The present invention relates to new and usefulimprovements in antifouling anchors to free the anchor from sunken logsor other obstructions which prevent hoisting the anchor.

An important object of the invention is to provide an anchor for smallboats embodying a shaft or shank to which the flukes are pivoted andlocked by catch means in a holding position and releasable upon apredetermined pulling force on the anchor rope to swing the shaft in areverse position relative to the flukes to free the anchor.

Another object is to provide catch means for locking the flukes to theshaft in either a holding or releasing position.

A further object is to provide an antifouling anchor of simple andpractical construction, which is efficient and reliable in operation,relatively inexpensive to manufacture and otherwise well adapted for thepurpose for which the same is intended.

These together with other objects and advantages which will becomesubsequently apparent reside in the details of construction andoperation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, whereinlike numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which:

Figure l is a side elevational view;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary longitudinal sectional view taken ona line 2--2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a side elevational view showing the flukes locked in areleasing position;

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on a line 4-4 of Figure 1;and

Figure 5 is a side elevational view showing the re leasing action forthe flukes.

Referring now to the drawings in detail, wherein for the purpose ofillustration, 1 have disclosed a preferred embodiment of my invention,the numeral 1 designates the shank or shaft of the anchor and whichincludes a rear shaft section 2 and a front shaft section 3. Section 2is formed with an eye 4 at its outer end for attaching an anchor rope 5thereto, while the inner end of section 2 is formed with a flange 6swivelly positioned in a housing 7 to the base 7a of which the outer endof shaft section 3 is welded or otherwise suitably secured. Housing 7 isconstructed of a cap portion 7b threaded onto a ring 7c which is weldedto the base 7a.

Shaft section 3 is slidably in a cylinder 8 and cap 9 at the rear end ofthe cylinder and base 7a of housing 7 rests on top of cap 9.

The rear end of the cylinder is closed by a cap 9 and a coil spring 10is mounted on the shank or shaft section 3 and tensionally adjustedagainst the cap by a washer 11 and nut 12 threaded on the shank or shaftto project a plunger catch 13 at the front end of shaft section 3 in anoutward direction at the front end of the cylinder.

The front end of the cylinder is bifurcated to form a pair of aperturedspaced parallel ears 14 in which a pin 15 is pivoted in a transverseposition on the cylinder and a pair of anchor flukes 16 are welded orotherwise secured to the outer ends of the pin. A circular cam 17 isalso secured to the pin 15 between the cars 14 and is formed withnotches 18 and 19 at diametrically opposite peripheral portions of thecam in which the outer end of plunger catch 13 is adapted to selectivelyenter to provide a catch for locking the flukes in either an anchorholding position, as shown by full lines in Figure 5, or in an anchorreleasing position, as shown in Figure 3.

Notch 18 is of an area to permit limited swinging of the flukes from oneside of the longitudinal axis of the shank to the other, while remaininglocked by catch 13.

Plunger catch 13 is released by a predetermined pulling force subjectedto the anchor rope and the releasing movement of the catch is limited bythe tension of spring 10. Cylinder 8 may be supplied with a lubricant bymeans of a filler plug 21 or grease fitting.

In the operation of the device, when the plunger catch 13 is engaged innotch 18, the flukes are locked in a forwardly inclined position withrespect to shank or shaft 1 of the anchor, as shown by full lines inFigure 5, in anchor holding position, and should the flukes becomefouled with a submerged obstruction, such as indicated at 22, apredetermined pulling force subjected to the anchor rope will releaseplunger catch 13 and permit shank or shaft 1 and cylinder 8 to swing onpin 15 in a rearward direction, as shown by dotted lines in Figure 5,while the flukes remain stationary, and the plunger catch will thenenter notch 19 to lock the flukes in a rearwardly extending positionwith respect to shank or shaft 1 whereupon the flukes may be pulled freeof the obstruction.

From the foregoing, the construction and operation of the device will bereadily understood and further explanation is believed to beunnecessary. However, since numerous modifications and changes willreadily occur to those skilled in the art, it is not desired to limitthe invention to the exact construction shown and described, andaccordingly, all suitable modifications and equivalents may be resortedto, falling within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed as new is as follows:

1. An antifouling anchor comprising a shank composed of an upper shanksection and a lower shank section, means connecting said shank sectionsto each other for longitudinal movement as a unit, said connecting meansbeing fixed to the lower shank section and said upper shank sectionbeing swivelly connected to the connecting means for relatively turningmovement of the upper and lower shank sections, a cylinder having anopen lower end, a plunger catch fixed to the lower shank section andslidable in the cylinder, a keeper rotatably supported at the open lowerend of the cylinder, a pair of anchor flukes secured to the keeper forswinging into either an upwardly inclined anchoring position or into adownwardly extended releasing position, said keeper having a pair ofnotches in the plane of the longitudinal axis of the flukes andselectively engaged by the plunger catch to lock the flukes in either ofsaid positions, and spring means in the cylinder behind the plungercatch to lock the latter in either of said notches.

2. An antifouling anchor comprising a shank composed of an upper shanksection and a lower shank section, means connecting the upper and lowershank sections to each other for longitudinal movement as a unit, saidconnecting means being fixed to the lower shank section and said uppershank section being swivelly connected to the connecting means forrelative turning movement of the upper and lower shank sections, acylinder having an open lower end, a pin rotatably mounted in atransverse position in the lower portion of the cylinder Patented July2, 1957 3 4 and projecting outwardly at opposite sides of the cylinder,positions, and spring means in the cylinder behind the a pair of anchorflukes fixed to the respective end porplunger catch to lock the latterin either of said notches. tions of the pin for swinging into either anupwardly inclined anchoring position or into a downwardly ex ReferencesCited in the file of this patent tended releasing position, adiametrically enlarged keeper 5 UNITED STATES PATENTS fixed to the pinbetween the fiukes, said keeper having a pair of notches therein in theplane of the longitudinal i if axis of the flukes, a plunger catch fixedto the lower shank 29357 6W 1' 1 section and slidahle in the cylinderand selectively en- 7 Jones Fe I 2 953 gaged in said notches to lock theflukes in either of said 10

